Inutsuki
by YukiNoFubuki
Summary: When fate throws Inutsuki and Kikyo together in a tragic end, Inutsuki is sealed on a tree. Inuyasha is female, renamed to Inutsuki (犬月).
1. New Moon

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. The character Inutsuki is mine, but its based off of Inuyasha, which i claim no right to.

"Who's there?!" Kikyo, sensing demonic energy behind her whirled around, drawing a arrow. The energy was there, but it was so weak, she almost didn't notice it.

"Sankon Tessou!" A high pitched voice cried out, and five youki enhanced claws came flying toward Kikyo. She swayed to the side and a small girl with white hair, cladded in red flew by her, hitting the ground at full speed. "Tch!" The girl sat up, shaking herself to get the dust of of herself. She looked up, right into the gleaming arrowhead

"I'll repeat. Who are you?" Kikyo asked the girl in front of her. She sighed. Even such small youkai are after the Shikon no Tama. Then she paused. Even such a small youkai should have more youki than that. "Girl...are you a hanyou?"

The girl sprang up. If she is scared of the arrow pointed at her, she didn't show it. "I'm not 'Girl' and you shall not refer to me as such!" Suddenly, out of her silver-white hair sprang out a pair of white dog ears. "My name is Inutsuki. So what if I'm a hanyou? I can still tear you to pieces!" She sprang at Kikyo, baring her teeth.

Kikyo released the tension of her bowstring and grabbed Inutsuki by her collar. "Listen, hanyou...not, Inutsuki, don't go looking for the Shikon no Tama again, or I'll be forced to kill you. It won't be the first time I'll be killing a demon." She dropped Inutsuki. "It's getting dark. I must get back. Do not follow me, Inutsuki."

As Inutsuki watched Kikyo walk into the darkness of the trees, she looked at the falling darkness. "It's getting dark..." she thought. "IT'S GETTING DARK!" She yelped and followed the scent of Kikyo into the trees, being careful to keep a distance away. "I've been so absorbed in getting the jewel that I forgot tonight is the new moon!" She came upon the village and hesitated.

"This place...it reeks of humans," Inutsuki thought, covering her nose. She jumped on a roof and followed the scent of Kikyo at a distance. At last, she stopped on top of a wooden roof and sat like she always did. She figured since Kikyo is a miko, no youkai should come near her house and if they did, she could purify it.

Suddenly, a arrow flew through the air next to her, nicking her ear. "Who's up there?!" She saw Kikyo nocking another arrow to her bow, aiming slightly to her left. It was her fading youki that saved her, for had it been even slightly stronger, Kikyo would have detected it and know a possibly youkai is above her house. Kikyo released the tension on her bowstring, muttering to herself, "It must be my imagination." She put the arrow back into her quiver and retreated back into her house.

Inutsuki relaxed in relief that she wasn't shot. With her youkai strength fading, she didn't think she could dodge an arrow. Suddenly, she tensed and her claws gouged furrows in the wood beneath her. Her beautiful silver-white hair darkened into a raven black color, just as pretty as her white hair had been. Her golden eyes too darkened into black and her claws shortened into nails of a human, leaving the furrows empty.

Her sharp senses dulled and everything seemed darker than before, and like every night of the new moon, she felt blind and deaf to the world. She settled back against the wood of the roof and watched the stars spread across the sky like a sparkling blanket as she drifted into sleep.

Note: Hello, Im back with a new fanfiction. Hope you like it like you liked my previous one, which I'm still trying to update.


	2. Mercy

At the first sign of the sun peeking above the trees of the forest, Inutsuki's eyes flew open. She looked at her nails. _Damn, still human_. She sighed resignedly idly watched as the sky grew brighter and brighter. All around her, the village began to stir as the farmers began their preparation for the day ahead.

As the first ray of sun struck Inutsuki, she felt her heart beat faster as her blood changed. As if bleached by the sun, her hair paled and then whitened into her normal silver-white color. Her senses became sharper in focus and she heard sounds in greater volume. She noticed smells in the air as her nose became keener. Finally, her nails hardened and grew longer.

Beneath her, she heard noises. It seemed that Kikyo is waking up, alarmed by the sudden appearance of youki in such close quarters. Hurriedly, Inutsuki pushed off the roof into the air, enjoying the cool breeze of dawn as she ran through the fields toward the forest.

-Later in the day-

A crash rang out through the forest, sending birds fleeing from the area. Inutsuki looked up from the stream from which she was trying to catch fish and headed bounded toward the disturbance. Soon, she came to a clearing. In the gap in the trees created by the giant bear youkai as he thrashed, snapping trees as easily as one might break a toothpick. She caught sight of the bear's target.

Kikyo darted around, trying to aim for the head of the bear. Each time she took aim, the bear's huge paws swatted at her, forcing her to move. When she does shoot, she hits the paws or other parts of the bear that weren't vital and these wounds merely regenerated and enraged the bear further.

As Inutsuki watched, Kikyo caught sight of her. "What, Inutsuki. Have you come to take my life too? Will you wait until one of us falls and taken destroy the weakened victor? Or, will you assist me in kill this youkai?" She grabbed a arrow from her quiver and opened her mouth to say more, but it was drown out by the bear's angry roar. As she passed a tree, she slammed the arrow into the trunk. Inutsuki had no doubt that the arrow is meant for her if Kikyo wins the struggle.

As the battle continued, Inutsuki climbed a tree and turned, not watching any further. Who won, she didn't care. At last, a shriek rang in the air as one of the bear's massive paws caught Kikyo with a glancing blow, slamming her into a tree. She fell to the ground and attempted to rise, but exhausted as she is, she fell back down. Roaring his victory to the heavens, the bear lifted a heavy paw and brought it down upon Kikyo's unmoving shape.

The giant paw never hit. With a cry, Inutsuki pushed off of her branch and tore the limb to pieces. The bear roared in pain and even as the limb twisted and convulsed, Inutsuki sprang up to the height of the bear's face, scoring her youki enhanced claws across his face again and again. Finally, she dug her claws in her palms, draw a tiny bit of blood. As small amount as the blood was on her nails, it was suit Inutsuki's purposes. She swung her claws, crossing it in front of her, sending a flurry of crimson crescent blades at the bear's head, cutting right though. As she landed, the giant bear dissolved as his source of power, his head is destroyed.

Inutsuki wiped her blood from her claws on her sleeves and looking into the forest. Voices traveled to her ears; voices calling for Kikyo. She walked to the unconcious miko and pulled her into a sitting position, putting her against the the trunk of the tree. Then, wordlessly, she jumped into a tree and disappeared into the forest.


	3. Threat

She sprang from tree branch to tree branch, never touching the forest floor as she kept Kikyo in sight. She flexed her fingers and was about to jump on the miko when Kikyo spun around and put an arrow though her robe's collar, pulling her back and pinning her to the tree branch, hanging.

"Let me down, Kikyo!" Inutsuki yelled as she struggled to get herself free. She knew she could free herself eventually, but not any time soon.

Kikyo frowned. "How do you know my name, Inutsuki?"

Inutsuki waited a while before answering. "Those villagers that came looking for you that day in the forest were calling your name."

"So you were the one that saved me that day? In that case, I must thank you." Kikyo put her hands in front of her and bowed, being careful not to allow the arrows in her quiver to fall out.

"In that case, get me off of this tree branch!" Inutsuki struggled some more. but every time she attempted to pull the arrow out, the residue of Kikyo's energy repelled her.

"I'm afraid I can't do that. After all, whats going to stop you from going after me as soon as I let you down?" Kikyo smiled and was about to turn and leave when Inutsuki called out to her again.

"Fine! I won't attempt to attack you again. Can you _please_ let me down?" She stopped struggling and looked at Kikyo with the saddest puppy eyes she can make, one that never failed with her mother when she was still alive.

At last, Kikyo relented and nocked an arrow to her bow, took aim and shot, cleaving the arrow pinning Inutsuki's collar in half, jolting it out of its arrow hole, both landing on the ground. Inutsuki herself landed flat on the ground, knocking the air out of her. "Remember your promise, Inutsuki. If not..." Kikyo let the threat hang in the air. She thought Inutsuki looked trustworthy enough, at least as trust worthy as a youkai can be.

"I'll remember," Inutsuki said, reluctantly. She might be mischievious and evil in her own way, but her pride would not allow her to lie. She sat up, shaking her head to clear her mind and watched as Kikyo departed.

-A few days later-

"Damn it!" Inutsuki faced the horde of youkai that was heading toward the village. If the youkai destroyed the village, Kikyo would die and the Shikon no Tama will be stolen. For some reason, Inutsuki felt draw toward the powerful miko named Kikyo; no, she will not allow Kikyo to die.

As soon as she attacked one youkai, however, they all turned their attention on her. "Its getting dark, I must end this as fast as I can before it turns night!" Inutsuki thought desperately. As the sun set, the sky darkened into red. As it darkened, she felt her youki fading gradually. Exhausted, she allowed her attention to lapse for a second, and she dropped to one knee on the bloodstained floor, mountains of youkai around her.

Suddenly, a one eyed youkai lunged behind her, sinking its teeth into her shoulder. As teeth entered her flesh, purple-ish clouds exploded around the wound as miasma entered Inutsuki's body. She cried out in pain, and then tore the head apart. As she tried to stand up, the wound widened and blood flowed freely from her shoulder. Evil miasma drifted out of the wound, left behind by the youkai's bite. The other youkai, initially cautious to attack, now raced forward, sensing weakness from the unconscious blood covered girl kneeling in the midst of a mountain of youkai. The girl must die, for she had slaughtered over half of their comrades!

None of them reached their intended target, however. An arrow trailing purple streaked through the air, cutting through the foremost of the youkai, dissolving everything around the trajectory and purifying Inutsuki's wound. Kikyo continued to shoot at the gathered youkai, emptying her quiver with amazing speed. Not one shot was wasted. Next to her, Kaede, Kikyo's younger sister carried with her a armload of arrows. As her quiver emptied, Kikyo began drawing arrows from Kaede's arms.

"Arise, Inutsuki!" Kikyo called to the prone figure in the midst of the hordes of youkai. Slowly, Inutsuki opened her eyes as she raised her head. Her eyes widened as she say Kikyo emptying the skies above her. Hurriedly, she stood, and ignoring her wound, bounded over to the flat rock Kikyo and Kaede is standing on.

"Why have you come, Kikyo...san?" she asked questioning, as she treated her shoulder with a salve and bandages she pulled from her robe. Scarcely slowly her shooting, Kikyo answered.

"I'm not stupid. When our village's watchman saw the horde of youkai approaching, I was already preparing. It was when I was almost finished when he sent someone to tell me that someone is killing the youkai. I knew it was you and I had a debt to repay so..." Kikyo's voice trailed off and she fired one final arrow, clearing the sky of the last youkai. "I thank you, Inutsuki. With all my power, I cannot stop such a numerous amount of demons..."

As she watch, the girl clad in red pitched forward, stopped only when Kaede dropped her arrows and caught Inutsuki. Before her eyes, the last of the youki faded from Inutsuki and her silver-white hair turned black. As she looked up, the last of daylight faded and the night became pitch black, unlit by the moon. Inutsuki had turned human; a weak human that would not survive the night alone, should any demons become attracted to the blood she is stained with.

Far away, on top of a tree, a man draped in baboon fur gritted his teeth. He had no idea who had stopped his army of demons. All he knew was that whoever it was destroyed his entire army, demolished it without a trace. Without a word, he turned away from the direction of the Shikon no Tama and jumped off the tree, into the darkness of the forest to plan in peace.

Note: Hello, a updated after 2 days, yay! Hope you like this chapter, so please review with comments and suggestions (I love suggestions and might implement them in the future). For a attempt at suspense, "I wonder who is the man draped in baboon fur?"


	4. Onee-sama

"Kaede, is the knife heated?"

"Yes, onee-sama." Kaede lifted a knife from the fire and handed it to Kikyo, being careful not to touch the metal. Kikyo accepted the knife and pressed the flat of the steel on the reopened wound the unconscious girl. Kikyo is aware of the frailty of humans compared to the strength and endurance of youkai. Left alone, the purified miasma from the youkai will return and kill Inutsuki overnight before she manages to regain her youki.

As the hot metal touched the opening, Inutsuki involuntarily twitched and screamed. Soon, the bleeding stopped and Kikyo hoped that the wound would not become infected. She covered Inutsuki with a blanket and laid down beside her, her presence alone purifying the poison within Inutsuki.

"Kaede, you should get some sleep. I'll be awake almost the whole night." Kaede nodded, crept to her pallet, covering herself with a blanket and fell asleep shortly.

Beside Kikyo, Inutsuki shifted uneasily in her sleep, crying out occasionally. Kikyo wasn't sure, but she thought she can make out the words "mother". She clutched the smaller girl tighter to her, smoothing her hair, trying to keep the poison in Inutsuki from destroying her mind.

-In the Morning-

Inutsuki opened her eyes as she felt her blood change and found herself looking at the ceiling of a human house. She looked around her and suddenly saw Kikyo's sleeping face. She gasped in surprise, but immediately covered her mouth. That sound, however, was enough to wake Kikyo, who always have been a light sleeper.

"Good morning, Inutsuki," Kikyo greeted as she noted Inutsuki's white hair. As she sat up, Inutsuki immediately tried to sit up too. Halfway up, Inutsuki winced, clutched her shoulder and fell back onto the bed. The poison had left her severely weakened. Kikyo stood up, feeling for her dress. Putting it on, she tied her long hair. Finally, she sat back down next to Inutsuki and hugged her. Inutsuki made no move to push her away.

"Why, did you save me? You repayed your debt last night..." Inutsuki said quietly, not looking Kikyo in the eyes.

"Even if you ask that, I can't just leave you there, can I?" Kikyo answered. The two sat in silence for a few moments. Finally, Kikyo asked Inutsuki,"Are you alone?"

Inutsuki looked at Kikyo in surprise; she had not been expecting a question like this. She waited a while before answering. "Yes... I'm a hanyou, so I'm shunned by both demons and humans. Wherever i go, I'm rejected. This is why I want the jewel... to be the strongest youkai in the land and force everyone to accept me."

Kikyo nodded, understanding. "I too, am alone. Wherever I go, demons attack, wanting to wipe my purifying power from the world. Kaede followed me every time we moved without complaint. She's a good girl." Kikyo paused in her story to look at the sleeping form of Kaede before continuing.

"At last we came to this village. For some reason, very little demons attack, probably dued to the youkai taijiya village nearby. I thought I could settle and live like a normal girl with Kaede but it will not be so."

"The Shikon no Tama was presented to me for me to purify and protect. Because of this treasure, countless youkai attacked. However, never once did the villagers asked me to leave; I'm grateful."

As Kikyo finished, Inutsuki remained silent as she thought over her words. At last, Kikyo spoke to Inutsuki again. "There is another path for you. You don't have to be a youkai."

At that, Inutsuki's ears perked up. "You mean, for me to become human?"

"Yes. Legend says that if you make the correct wish upon to Shikon no Tama, it will be destroyed. There is another way. If a person makes a selfless wish for another they care about, that wish will be granted and the Shikon no Tama will be destroyed forever."

Tears welled up in Inutsuki's eyes and she pressed her head into Kikyo's arms. "You would do that for me..?"

Kikyo smiled at the girl in her arms. "So strong on the outside, but a soft and warm heart within," she thought to herself. "Yes, Inutsuki, I will. Afterwards, you can live with me and Kaede."

Inutsuki looked up at the smiling face and uttered one sentence, her eyes full of gratitude.

"Thank you, onee-sama."


	5. Darkness

Kikyo ran a finger through Inutsuki's soft silky hair. She began to smooth it, the rhythmic movement making Inutsuki feel sleepy. In moments, Inutsuki fell asleep, her head leaned against Kikyo's chest. Gently, Kikyo lifted Inutsuki's head off her chest and set her lightly down on the pallet, fast asleep.

She walked quietly over to Kaede's pallet, shaking her lightly to wake her up. "Kaede, Kaede, wake up!"

The younger girl murmured and turned in her sleep. Shaking harder, Kikyo finally managed to wake Kaede up. "What is it, Kikyo nee-sama?" she asked sleepily as she woke. Kikyo put a finger to her lips and pointed toward Inutsuki's sleeping form. Kaede, understanding, nodded. She quickly got dressed and followed Kikyo out of the small hut.

Kikyo wore her usual dress, a white shirt tucked into a red hakama, with everything bound by a ribbon in front of her. She also tied her long black hair in a loose ponytail with a thin white silk ribbon. She carried her bow and a basket on her back. Kaede followed close behind, a smaller basket and an over sized quiver on her back. She wore a orange kimono with black flower patterns on it.

As the sisters walked away from the village into the forest to collect herbs and for Kaede to practice her archery, the villagers waved them off. Ever since the sisters came to the village, they have been safe from demons that the taijiya couldn't keep away. Kaede's innocence and Kikyo's kindness won the respect and loyalty of the villagers and they are well liked.

-In the Forest-

"You infuse your spiritual powers into the arrow and fire it." Kikyo took an arrow from Kaede's quiver, and fired it, burying it in the center of a tree trunk, demonstrating. Kaede eagerly nodded, taking the bow and drawing an arrow from her quiver. She pushed the bow forward even while she pulled the arrow back and was about to release it when Kikyo's fingers closed over her's, adjusting her aim.

As soon as Kikyo's finger's didn't touch her hand, she let go of fletching of the arrow, sending the arrow rocketing into the tree right below Kikyo's arrow. As the arrow flew, a pink aura emitted from the tip of the arrow. The aura was not as bright as Kikyo's but it lit up the dark forest. Cheering, Kaede looked at Kikyo for her acknowledgement. Kikyo smiled.

"You did well, Kaede. Now, the Arrow of Sealing." Kikyo took the bow from Kaede's hands and put an arrow on the string, pulling back. The arrow didn't emit a solid light like the sacred arrows did; rather, a light white aura like mist wrapped around the arrow from Kikyo's hand. She released her grip and the arrow buried itself in the trunk of the tree.

Kaede looked confused. "Kikyo nee-sama, you've never mention this to me before. What demon would you seal and not kill?"

Kikyo laughed. "There are some demons that are immortal. To stop them, we seal them in a eternal sleep so they can never wake up. We will probably never see one, but it wouldn't hurt for you to learn it." She watched as Kaede shot an arrow of sealing at the tree (the tree will never wake up again!) and nodded in satisfaction.

"Kaede, ill be in the forest gathering herbs. Practice your archery. When you run out of arrows, take them from the tree." Kikyo shouldered her basket. "Oh, and Kaede?" Her sister looked at he questioningly. "Don't shoot too many Sealing arrows. They are very draining and you can't pull them out afterwards." That said, Kikyo disappeared into the dark gloom of the forest and the tree rang with the occasional _thunk_ of arrowheads striking wood.

-In the hut-

A man wearing a coat of baboon fur looked down upon the sleeping form of Inutsuki. Outside, everything was silent. Everyone was asleep, and will remain that way as long as the man remains nearby. Even if they wake up, they will retain no memory of what happened.

The man laughed quietly, a deep resounding laugh. "Kikyo and Inutsuki..." he chuckled under his breath. "This will be interesting." He knelt and put a pale hand over Inutsuki's forehead, and the air became cold. A dark form reached out of his hand and entered Inutsuki and her breathing quickened. Her eyelids flickered and she writhed in her sleep. With a final chuckle, the man stood up and disappeared in a wisp of darkness. As the last of the mist dispersed, Inutsuki stopped moving, and she once again sank into her dreams.

Note: Hope you like this chapter :D Review with comments and suggestions please :3 Cya soon ^_^


	6. Seal

Inutsuki's eyes fluttered open. Slowly, she sat up. Tentatively, she rolled her shoulder; no pain rang up her arm. Releasing her breath in relief, she pulled off her bandages. She smiled to herself. While she can't regenerate, her wounds healed incredibly fast. Looking out the window, she saw the sky turn orange and red as the sun set. Her ears flicked in annoyance at the fact she slept an entire day away. She grabbed her

Her ears flicked again as she heard two approaching footsteps. The curtain door was brushed aside and Kikyo walked in with her sister. When she saw Inutsuki up and about, Kikyo stopped in surprise. "Are you sure you're suppose to be up this quickly?"she asked, concerned.

Inutsuki answered cheerfully, "Yup!" She untied the string on the front of her shirt and shook off one side of it, revealing her shoulder. There was not even a scar. Then, she noticed Kaede behind Kikyo.

"Oh right, you don't know each other yet," Kikyo said. She pushed Kaede forward. "This is my sister Kaede. She is training to be a priestess.

"This is Inutsuki. She's will be your older sister, Kaede, okay?"

Kaede nodded. She bowed. "Nice to meet you, Inutsuki-san!" Inutsuki politely bowed too, although she wasn't used to it. After all, when one hand to spend every waking hour struggling to stay alive, you tend to forget your manners.

"Right, now that that we got this over with, let us prepare our evening meal," Kikyo stated. She lowered her basket to the ground and went to draw water from a river." Before she left, she called to Inutsuki. "How does tomorrow afternoon sound?"

Inutsuki nodded, and Kikyo left, leaving the two "younger"(Inutsuki is over 150, but she matures slowly) girls alone in the hut.

-The next day-

Kikyo woke to find Inutsuki not in the spot she slept in on Kaede's pallet. Puzzled, she brushed the bamboo curtain aside a little, but found no trace of the little dog demon. "She is more than capable of taking care of herself," she decided, crawling back into her blankets and falling into a troubled sleep.

In the pool by the waterfalls, Inutsuki poured another bucket of cold water over herself. She ducked underwater and ran her fingers through her hair, allowing the dust and grime from her travels to float away. "I must look my best tomorrow," she thought, speaking her mind out loud. Bubbles rose to the surface and popped. Slowly, she stood and walked out of the water.

Sitting on a rock by the water, she soaked her clothing and cleaned it, watching as dried blood and dirt pulled away from the robe and disappeared in the water. As she pulled the robe from the water, it became warm and the Fire Rat's youki dried the robe.

Satisfied, she pulled her her clothing and jumped barefooted into the tree to await rise of the sun.

"Where are your going, Kikyo nee-sama?" Kaede asked as she fastened a steel arrowhead to a straight wooden shaft, brushing her fingers over the feathers of the fletching. Kikyo sat in front of a mirror, lightly apply smudging rouge on her lips, a gift from Inutsuki.

"It's a secret!" Kikyo answered. "I'll be right back!" She stood and almost _ran_ out the door, something Kaede never seen her sister do. As she pondered over this question, she nicked her finger on an arrowhead. "Ow!" she winced, putting her finger in her mouth before bounding it.

Inutsuki sprang from tree to tree as she practically flew over the forest. She headed from the clearing that she and Kikyo met in. Far behind her, a man in baboon fur laughed evilly. He extended a hand in front of him and a ball of dark mist formed in his hand. He squeezed his fist shut and far in front of him, Inutsuki felt a stab of pain in her head and she faltered, falling through the leaves onto the ground below.

Kikyo waited in the clearing. "Inutsuki!" she called, looked about her. She reached into her sleeve, feeling for the Shikon no Tama when a thought came to her. So happy was she, that she forgot to bring the jewel itself! This is so unlike her! As she turned back toward the village, hoping Inutsuki would be late, a red shape hurled from the trees behind up.

Stepping to the side at the last moment, Kikyo felt claws rake past he arm, shredding the cloth and drawing blood. As the shape plowed into the grass in front of her, sending a thick cloud of dust into the air, she jumped back, clutching her arm. She cursed under her breath, for she hadn't thought to bring her bow.

As the dust cleared, she started in surprise. There, crouching in the grass is none other than Inutsuki! "Why.." Kikyo started to say, but she stopped herself. She sensed something different in Inutsuki. Her youki was thicker than before...almost like a real youkai. A jagged purple-blue stripes marked each side of Inutsuki's cheeks. Her gold colored eyes turned dark red, like blood.

Her eyes focused on Kikyo, but her expression did not change. Suddenly, she sprang forward. As Kikyo tried to dodge again, she held one claw to her side, tearing a deep wound into Kikyo's shoulder. With a cry of pain, Kikyo fell forward, clutching her wounded shoulder. Inutsuki walked slowly up to the fallen woman. Raising her claws to deal the final blow, she stopped.

Kikyo sensed the youki emitting from Inutsuki pulse as her human heart fought her youkai heart. Slowly, the claws slashed slowly down toward Kikyo. "Leave..nee-sama...run..."

Kikyo's eyes widened as she heard Inutsuki speak. As she tried to stand, Inutsuki backed away, covering her face in pain. Then she was gone, as she jumped into the trees. Kikyo slowly rose to her feet and started with slow heavy steps toward the village. "Kikyo-sama!"

A villager had spotted her. Rushing toward her, he supported her as she stopped at the top of the stairs to the shrine. "No, this is too slow. Bring me.. my bow," Kikyo said, clutching her shoulder. Nodding, the man sprinted off.

As Kikyo waited, heard a commotion. Below her, the village was in chaos. A figure in red burst out of a fishing net that was being used to restrain her and dodged arrows that flew toward her. Inutsuki crashed into the roof of the shrine that held the Shikon no Tama and disappeared inside. As the villager brought her her bow and quiver, she nocked an arrow and painfully drew the bowstring back.

The villages threw open the door and shot arrows and spears into the structure. As Inutsuki burst out of the roof of the shrine, it exploded, throwing the villagers back. Even from the top of the stairs, Kikyo could see the glowing red eyes as Inutsuki ran, leaping over houses as she went for the outskirts of the village. Clutching the jewel in her hands, she sprint toward the forest.

A white aura encircled Kikyo's arrow and she released it. The arrow flew toward the Sacred Tree, Goshinboku. Inutsuki passed in front the tree and the arrow rammed into her chest, pinning her to the tree. There, she stay, the jewel still in her hand. Her eyes, wide open, drooped. As the presence of Kikyo purified the wisp of darkness in her, Inutsuki's youki faded. Her red eyes once again became gold and the jagged stripes disappeared from her face.

"What.." she asked quietly. She touched the arrow buried in her chest and the jewel in her hands. A tear drop fell out of her eyes as she understood. She looked at Kikyo, supported by her bow in front of her. "I'm sorry, nee-sama..." Smiling, Inutsuki reached in front of her with the hand that held the Shikon no Tama. She turned her hand over and the jewel fell from her hands on the floor and she closed her eyes, falling limp.

Kikyo's gripped faltered and she collapsed from to the ground, her fingers deathly cold. "I'm sorry, Inutsuki..."she murmured, tears running down her face. Dimly, she heard and saw the people of the village gathering around her. One face stood out clearly among the other; her sister Kaede.

Kaede clutched her dying sister's hands when Kikyo's lips moved. Leaning in closer, she listened. "When i die, burn the..Shikon no Tama with me..." With the last breath, Kikyo's breathing faded and Kaede lifted her head and wailed her loss to the world.

_I'm sorry, Inutsuki... Forgive me_


End file.
